Lidstrom for life

Even if Crosby was in the KHL, we'd still constantly hear about him every NBC game.

Not only that, but he'll be offered that kind of money in his native country, near all of his friends and family. I won't lose a bit of respect for him if he decides to take an offer for big money in the KHL.

A 6th round pick...they must have reeeally wanted to keep the guy.

Sorry to burst your Hudler-hate bubble, but the head coach of the team already has stated Hudler will play top six minutes next season. You are no different -- in fact, actually worse -- than the Hudler "slappies" with your extreme hatred of Hudler. Beyond the big three, Hudler is the most talented offensive threat on the team now.

Not to get too far off topic, but what I don't understand is why NBC airs the first two games of the series, but not the 3rd and 4th.
What if either team sweeps the series? Then you'd have the Cup ceremony and the end of the NHL season being aired on Versus, where more than half the country wouldn't even see it. I don't like this partnership with NBC. The way they dictate the scheduling is horrible for marketing the league.

2006 draft - Wings 1st selection - Cory Emmerberg
2007 draft - Wings 1st selection - Brendan Smithstrom
2008 draft - Wings 1st selection - Thomas McCollumov
2009 draft - Wings 1st selection - Landon Ferrarkinen
You mean like this?

Ive read in multiple articles that Bertuzzi doesnt want to be anywhere but here and that the money issue will be worked out. He likes playing in this atmosphere and likes the role that he has on the team. Combine that with all the Holland interviews saying that he loves how Bert plays and wants to have him back next season, and id say we have a contract in the waiting. I dont see a huge raise by anymeans as i beleive Bert is still seeing money come in from previous teams, so i dont think the wings will have to give him much more than what he was getting this season. With Williams more than likely gone, and the possibility of Lidstrom taking a pay cut, i dont think we will have a problem filling a competitive roster, one with Bertuzzi. I would look to him having a comparable season to this year with hopefully less penalties. Hopefully he can still get 20 goals playing on the 3rd line all season. he got alot of his goals this season when he was getting 1st and second line minutes when we had alot of injuries, But hopefully with Hudler returning we will be able to field a good scoring 1st 2nd and 3rd line.

Those are all traits that apply to Hudler yet people have been pretty high on him around here since word of his return.

Why does Lebda have to wait for this Lidstrom joker to make a decision?
Hurry up already with the decision so that we can know whether Lebda will be back or not next year.

i don't think thats it at all. i think most people that are down on bertuzzi just get frustrated by the penalties, the lack of hustle, the of consistency, the lack of defense, etc...
with that said, i think most people ended up satisfied with the season he put in. personally i was worried as i think he was pretty bad for calgary the year before despite the point total he ended up with. i think this year he was looking very similar to that player through the first few months.
like i said though, i think people realize he isn't going to get 90-100 points each season like he once did; i think many folks just think his negatives outweigh his positives. hopefully if they bring him back he can have another year like this one as i think overall it was pretty good.

Draper is already signed for that amount, so there's nothing we can do about it... Miller will be re-signed, Holland has already said he will tender offers to all of his RFA's and with the way he played this past year, unless someone actually signs him to an offer sheet(not likely) and we get draft picks as compensation, I don't see why we wouldn't keep him as a bottom line guy, he's great as an energy guy/PK guy...
I don't see Bert taking a pay cut, so I priced him in at the same price he was already at... as for Holmstrom, his agent said he will not take a home-town discount and wants a raise, so that's the only reason I notched that number in there - when you average it out for a 20-30 goal and 50+ pt guy (not to mention how many more goals are DIRECTLY related to his work in front of the net, 2.5 is not an overpayment...

I wish they could move up 9 spots to grab Niederreiter.
Tyler Pitlick has a pretty hilarious name, why not take him?
edit: spelling

Not to be a dink Bring back the bruise brothers but you just named 3 Canadian players, he said Finnish players play more Canadian style than US born players.
His intentions (I think) were to say that Finnish players do indeed play like Shanny, Yzerman and the such.

So Yzerman and Shanahan didnt have heart?McCarty didn't have heart?none of them worked hard?What about a guy like Mike Richards?he doesn't have heart or work hard?What a ridiculously stupid comment to make when you have nothing to back it up.Olli Jokinen does not have what I consider heart.Everyone knows he causes problems within the team he's playing for.Just an all around idiotic thing to say.wow.

Maybe all our Swedes just didn't want a Finn in the lineup.
Fillpulla has already become a Swede, so he doesn't count.

Miller spent a significant amount of time on the Wings' second and third lines this year. Also, next year Abby will be taking a permanent spot on the PK, so Miller's PK abilities will be replaced (who knows how well). I don't think it is realistic to assume that Miller and Eaves will be back next year, and (price constant) Eaves would be a better choice IMO.
Afinogenov will not sign for 1.1M or less, no matter what. His contract was signed based on this decreasing production for the Sabers (.5 ppg), but he seems to have picked his play up again. Even for 2M, Maxim is a bargain. Asham signed his Philly contract after a down year with the Devils. He is a rare player than can score 20+ points in a season and get in 10+ fights. Therefore, we will command more than 700k. Although I would like them both, they will need much more money than you have budgeted here.

http://www.redwingscentral.com/prospects/nestrasil.php

As of 11/2/09

SCOUT COMMENTS
"He's willing to pay the price every shift and he's ready to battle every shift. He's a big body, he throws his body around, he never refuses physical contact and he's always engaged ... He's not a guy you look at and say, 'He's going to be a third- or fourth-line guy in the NHL.' He's got more skill than that. If he keeps improving his skating, he could be a good offensive player in the NHL." — Victoriaville Tigres head coach Yanick Jean (June 2009) ... "He likes to take the puck to the net. He protects the puck well in the corners and he's got the hands to do it. He's got good size and he's just a good hockey player." — Red Wings assistant general manager Jim Nill (June 2009).

STRENGTHS
Has the offensive game of a new-age power forward ... Superb puck control, taking advantage of his ample size and strength ... Great down low and along the boards ... Capable hitter ... Willing to go into traffic and battle ... Terrific 1-on-1 moves and deadly on shootouts ... More of a playmaker with impressive vision ... Continues to take big steps forward in his development.

WEAKNESSES
Needs to pick up his skating speed and one-step quickness a few strides to be an NHLer, but will be a high-end prospect if he does ... Better speed would put more power behind his hits.

PROJECTION
The Red Wings have a highly-skilled top-six forward with size in the making if Nestrasil improves his skating, although his lack of speed was a big reason why he was still available in the third round of the 2009 draft. Nestrasil will be expected get a little bit faster, but should put up 80 to 90 points as a second-year QMJHLer with Victoriaville in 2009-10.

I think this year he's shown that as long as he stays healthy, he's still a solid power forward with a little bit of a scoring touch. I wouldn't be opposed to having him back, as long as he doesn't ask for a massive increase in salary. Obviously age and health are going to be big concerns with him this year, so I think you would need to bring back an Eaves/Miller for depth.

this is awesome. now i can watch the best team playing the best game of the year on the best channel all at once

lightning in a bottle? he's put up around 40 points for 3 years
plakanec will also cost a hell of a lot more than bertuzzi. no way montreal gets rid of him either.

Ive said it before and Im going to keep saying it lol but I really think that Flip Bert Mule (not in that order) would be an amazing second line for us. This also puts Dats and Z back together on line one with??????????? who knows the answer to that? I think Hudler would do very well but Ive been riled for that before lol so what do you guys think?

agreed, we CANNOT lose him for nothing, I love our loyalty, but if it comes down to it, they need to waive Draper before they waive Ritola... he may not ever be more than a 4th line guy in this league, but he has WAY too much potential to lose for nothing...

They should mix it up and play the game at night.

less poops in jam doesn't make it more eatable...

The list of rookie d-men who were disappointing in their first season is as long as it is predictable.
Ericsson will never be Lidstrom so it was absurd for anyone to think he`d step in as a rookie and dominate.
In the NHL you expect first year defensemen to flub the puck-- it takes years for NHL d-men to gain the kind of poise we demand from our 3rd pairing in Detroit. People pretend it wasn`t like that for Kronwall, Fischer, or any of the other non sucky d-men we`ve seen emerge here since the golden years of Vladdy and Lidstrom but those are the facts.
Hell, look at Hall Gill-- he blows donkey dicks but he`s massive and in the playoffs he`s managed to learn how to turn size without skill into shutting down Crosby. Ericsson may not have Gill`s size but at least he can skate well for a guy his size.
In a few years when Ericsson`s got his game nailed down and is playing with confidence most of the people here will pretend they loved him from the start (just like we saw with Kronwall-- anyone remember the rage on here when he got his big contract? The board was pretty split on him back then).
In the end I won`t be shocked when Ericsson`s game evens out and he`s a valuable member of the back end because this is what almost always happens with young d-men who come into the NHL.